Fatehgarh Churian

Fatehgarh Churian
city
Fatehgarh Churian

Location in Punjab, India

Coordinates: 31°51′52″N 74°57′04″E / 31.8644°N 74.9511°E / 31.8644; 74.9511Coordinates: 31°51′52″N 74°57′04″E / 31.8644°N 74.9511°E / 31.8644; 74.9511
Country  India
State Punjab
District Gurdaspur
Population (2001)
  Total 15,879
Languages
  Official Punjabi
Time zone IST (UTC+5:30)

Fatehgarh Churian is a city and a municipal council in Gurdaspur district in the state of Punjab, India.

Demographics

According to the census of India 2011,[1] Fatehgarh Churian has a total population of 13,070 of which 6,881 are males, while 6,189 are females. The religion data of census shows 42.10% of the population as Hindus, 41.10% of Sikhs, 16.6% of Christians and .20% as others. The population of Children with ages of 0-6 is 1,351, which is 10.34% of total population of the town. The literacy rate of Fatehgarh Churian is 85.46% higher than the state average of 75.84%. In Fatehgarh Churian, male literacy is around 89.09%, while female literacy rate is 81.46%.

History

Before the 18th century it was Bandesha Jats dominant area. Bandeshas' also called Bandechha ruled this region in the 17th century. During the 18th century, the Khaniya Misl, founded by Jai Singh, established themselves in Sangatpura; a village 7 km from Fatehgarh Churian. After that they vigorously took control of the whole area from Bandeshas'.

Kharak Singh, son of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, was married to Chand Kaur, daughter of Sardar Fateh Singh in this village. Rani Chand Kaur built an attractive temple, a jewel of Maharaja Ranjit Singh's reign, Panj Mandir, here with a Pucca tank, which still stands.[2] The 180 years old temple carries the profound legacy of Punjab in the form of unique frescoes adorning monuments. Unfortunately, due to the dire neglect of concerned authorities, it is sinking in the oblivion. After the visit of two member ASI team in 2011 and sanction of Rs 3 crores for restoration, it is still waiting for any action.[3] It is said that there was a pucca tunnel linking the temple and the Fort, built for the convenience of Rani Chand Kaur to go to the temple every day for worship. Before 1947 the town had presence of Muslim population including Shias and Sunnis. This is evident from the numerous old mosques, which were converted into Gurudwaras. The Sunni and Shia Muslims were roughly in equal numbers.

After the partition of India, a number of Hindu and Sikh migrants from newly formed Pakistan settled here.

Description

Situated on the boundary between Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts, it is the last village in Gurdaspur district although it is closer to Amritsar than Gurdaspur. It is well connected to other towns by the road network. It is surrounded by towns like Amritsar (26 km), Batala (25 km), Ajnala (21 km), and Dera BaBa Nanak (19 km). It is on the railway line between Amritsar and Dera Baba Nanak.

Fatehgarh Churian municipal council has administration over 2,550 houses divided into thirteen different wards. Basic education facilities are excellent with prestigious schools like St. Francis Convent School, Captain School of Excellence and Divine Disciples International School, Saraswati Vidya Mandir, L.D.R.M Memorial High School, Saravhitkari Vidya Mandir. In case of further studies i.e. after class 10, it still is far behind. Nevertheless, an all girls college, Pt. Mohan Lal S. D. College for Girls was established in 2005. It provides graduate level courses in science and arts streams.[4]

Some of the notable personalities of the region include:

Notable places

Famous religious places are Gagranwala Mandir, Tahli Sahib Gurudwara,Panj Mandir, Githi Das Mandir, Talab Wala Mandir, and Gurudwara Takhia Wala. Recently a church has been constructed by Catholic Missionaries near St. Francis Convent school. In addition to these, Puran Shah's Haveli is another landmark of the town.

Most of the religious days are celebrated by the people of town collectively as a community.Many local clubs and societies of religious nature also help in the celebrations.Organizing Sant Samelans, gathering of seers and saints, and Shoba Yatras are now tradition of the town.

How to reach

By air: Fatehgarh Churian is located 27.6 km from Amritsar airport (Sri Guru Ram Das Ji International Airport)

By rail: Fatehgarh Churian has its own railway station.

By road: Fatehgarh Churian town is located on the “Amritsar-Dera Baba Nanak Road”.

References

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 10/15/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.